The present invention relates in general to a container and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to a container for selectively dispensing a contained material.
Although containers are well known in the art, conventional containers used in conjunction with highly viscous materials, for example, grease, adhesive, anti-seize compounds, and the like suffer from numerous drawbacks. Typical containers include, but are not limited to, tubes, boxes, plastic enclosures with lids and the like. Dispensing material from these conventional containers can be a messy and extremely inaccurate and wasteful process. In general, there is no way to approximate or control the amount of material dispensed from a typical container. Also, typical containers, for example tubes, are subject to leakage. As material is squeezed from the tube, excess material is often unnecessarily dispensed leading to waste. Also, material is left in the container and wasted.
Additionally, some applications require the use of a brush to apply the dispensed material. In general, the brush is not designed to cooperate with the container, so waste and mess are inevitable. In some instances, the brush is attached to the bottom side of the lid and is fully immersed within the material, and leads to over-application of the material and excessive mess. In cases where the brush is not attached to the lid, one must find a place to rest the brush when not in use. The user cannot lay the brush down without getting the dispensed material on surrounding surfaces. In the case of an adhesive, the brush may bond to the surface the brush is laid upon, ruining not only the brush, but also the surface or item the brush was laid upon.
Anti-seize compounds, grease, and lubricants (called “lubricious paste” herein) are often applied to the threaded shafts of screws, bolts, and other fasteners in order to prevent installed fasteners from seizing up over time, thus allowing easier removal at a later time. They are also sometimes used to facilitate installation of (or disassembly of) threaded (and non-threaded) shafted items. They are also used to reduce friction between any two moving parts. Historically, this has often been done by dipping the fastener's threaded portion/shaft into an open container holding the anti-seize paste, or by applying “blobs” of the anti-seize paste to the fastener's shaft using a brush or applicator. However, this results in much more of the paste being used than is actually necessary. Further, it can lead to an incredible mess, both at the installation site and also on and around the container, since any attempt to wipe off excess paste “expands” the sticky mess. It is desirable to provide a way to apply a more appropriate amount of the anti-seize paste to threaded fasteners, and to apply it only in a desired location while still completely and uniformly covering the threads/shaft. Another problem is that repairmen are not inclined to take the time (nor have the patience) to limit the amount of paste that they apply, nor be accurate in their point of application when putting anti-seize paste onto a fastener. Currently, containers and brushes for applying anti-seize compounds, grease, and lubricants are intended to be thrown away, leading to environmental concerns and a non-environmentally friendly system.